


Becoming Independent

by ImaKaraTabiHe



Category: Justice League - All Media Types, Young Justice - All Media Types
Genre: Child Abuse, Dysfunctional Family, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, New Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-13
Updated: 2016-04-12
Packaged: 2018-05-20 04:16:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 12,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5991412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ImaKaraTabiHe/pseuds/ImaKaraTabiHe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On his way to the Foundry, Oliver finds one of his pseudo-nephews on the streets in need of help.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Finding Wally West

Wally walks slowly to the Arrow Cave. Letting his feet drag on the pavement as he makes his way through Star City. In the distance a lamp flickers, devoid of the kind of warmth he wishes it had. Internally he's groaning about how much of a lecture he'll get from Uncle Barry. He wasn't supposed to be in Star City. Not that he was supposed to be home. It was his weekend to spend at Mount Justice. Tonight, Wally didn't feel like spending it with his teammates. The energy and lighthearted banter between friends just didn't feel right to him.

Normally he might've gone to Coast City to see Uncle Hal, but Uncle Hal was off planet for a mission with Uncle Barry. Thank gosh they weren't on Earth right now. Still, Wally was a bit sad he couldn't run to his Uncle Hal's place. There was always Uncle Bruce, but Wally shudders to think what it would be like showing up in the Bat Cave asking if he could stay. That would set off all kinds of creepy bat radars that would have the dark detective looking at his life so closely he would know the last time Wally misrecycled plastic. Too. Fucking. Scary.

Plus this time it was kind of...serious. Not too serious persay, just a little bit serious. Tad bit. His bruises and wounds ached with a throbbing pain that Wally felt all the way up to his eyes. Distracted, he tripped and fell flat on his face. Swearing vibrantly in several languages, he picked himself up slowly, gently. 'This is just great,' Wally complained to himself. 'So fucking wonderful.' He was getting really tired and he just wanted to collapse and never move again. “Uncle Ollie better have a couch there” he mumbled to himself as he continued towards the Arrow Cave.

He was getting closer, slowly. He sighed as he noticed the increasing darkness. He wasn't in the best part of town. Plus not being in his Kid Flash uniform made him feel so vulnerable. Roy would have a fit if he knew Wally was walking around that part of town out of uniform. After all, when he wasn't Kid Flash he was just a gangly looking boy that apparently looked like fresh meat, easy to chop. He hadn't had any progress learning the Bat Glare from Robin, which annoyed him to no end. He would've liked to learn it if he was going to be wandering the streets of Star City as Wally West.

A wave of weakness washed over him and he stumbled against a brick wall, leaning into it for support. His vision wavered and blacked. Wait, why couldn't he see? 'Eyes closed, duh Wally,' he chided himself, trying to pry his eyes open, yet not succeeding much. “Wally?” A familiar voice caught his ears. Internally he perked up, trying to find the source of that voice. “Unc' Ollie?” His voice came out slurred with exhaustion and pain. He lost his balance against the wall and fell forwards. “Wally!” He was caught by a pair of strong hands, his nose catching the scent of sweat and the faint scent of Oliver's favorite whiskey. “Wally! What's wrong? Are you okay?” Now it sounded a bit like Oliver was panicking.

Wally blinding reached out and gripped Oliver's clothing as he picked him up. “'m okay, just… need to stay with you for a bit, 'kay Unc' Ollie?” His voice was weak as he begged his adopted Uncle, who was practically running with him in arms. “Sure, kid, whatever you want okay,” Oliver's voice agreed fearfully. “Just stay with me and we'll get you looked at at the Foundry.” Wally mumbled a few intelligable words. “What, Wally?” Wally put more voice into his words to be heard, “S'not the Foundry, s' Arrow Cave.” He felt oddly comforted feeling the vibration of Oliver's laughter move through his body. “Sure, kid, sure.” He let Oliver carry him towards the Arrow Cave.

He heard the opening of a door as it jerked and he groaned as the bright light hit his partially opened eyes. “Sshh ssh, Kid, I gotcha,” Oliver murmured assurances to Wally. Oliver gently set Wally down on a couch Barry had convinced him to get, looking over Wally's exhausted features with concern. Oliver lightly shook Wally's shoulder to get Wally's attention. “Wally, Wally, what hurts? Can you tell me what happened?”

Wally grumbled softly about something. “Wally I can't hear you if you don't speak up,” Oliver said, but he was already going over Wally, rolling up his shirt to look for injuries. He found the black and blue of Wally's stomach and sides unnerving. No Speedster ever got that bruised. Oliver would get that bruised if he'd been in a gang fight, but Speedsters were supposed to be too fast to get that kind of beating. The only way this would happen was if Wally were overwhelmed by numbers or beaten by someone who had more power than him, say another Speedster.

The thought of another Speedster shook Oliver's calm facade and he quickly rolled up Wally's pant legs to check if he had been hurt there. He found cuts, some of which were still oozing blood, others which were in the process of healing. This was worse than when he'd first seen the bruises on Wally's face out on the street. He cursed vibrantly under his breath in Chinese. As he got a medical kit and set to work on bandaging his pseudo nephew up. He thought about calling Barry or Hal and quickly remembered that they were off world on a League sanctioned mission. 'Must be why Wally came here…' Oliver thought. He was a little proud to think he'd be chosen above Batman. 'Roy would flip if he…' He let his thoughts trail off in horror. 'Oh god. Roy's going to kill me.'

A shudder ran down his spine at the thought of Roy. Oliver hadn't called Roy when he found Wally. Roy would be so pissed at Oliver for not calling his adopted son about finding his best friend wandering the streets, beaten up. Oliver groaned internally. 'Do I call him now or do I let Wally call?' Whichever, Roy was going to be ticked off.

A soft whimper from his pseudo nephew shook him from his thoughts and brought him back to reality. “Kid? Wally?” He questioned softly. Wally opened his eyes, blinking several times before focusing on Oliver. “'m okay, Unc' Ollie...” His words were still a bit slurred, causing Oliver to look more closely at his head and eyes. Most likely a concussion. “Uh-huh.. The way you stumbled sure looked like you were okay.” He teased Wally. Wally just huffed as a reply and Oliver laughed at that. He hesitated before falling serious. “Wally, what happened?”

He saw fear light up in Wally's green eyes and, he wasn't sure, but his pale skin looked ghostly now. Oliver hand his hand on Wally's and rubbed it gently. “Wally, you're safe, but I need to know what happened.” Oliver insisted, holding back the forceful tone that he wanted to put in his voice. He wasn't as bad as Batman when he got pissed, but Green Arrow really wanted to find whoever did this and tear them a new one. “You can't tell...” Wally's soft voice made Oliver do a double take. He was hurt, very hurt and he wanted Oliver to not tell. Oliver may not have been known as one to follow rules, but there were some things that even he wouldn't let slide.

“Wally,” he began gently. Oliver didn't want to scare him or force him. He knew that being forceful like Batman, while he got results, would break the trust that Wally had in him. Wally trusted him a lot more than he had thought. To come to him in a time of trouble, he could see the trust that Wally held in him. “I need you to tell me so I can help you. I can't promise that I won't tell anyone, but right now there's no one to tell.” He kept his voice soft and encouraging as he tried to reassure Wally that telling him what happened would be the right call. “Barry and Hal are off planet, Bruce would probably dodge my calls, Dick and Roy are out investigating cases and I know they don't answer their comms when they get deep into something...” He could see the conflicting emotions in Wally's eyes – relief, fear, need, anger…and disappointment.

“But when I can, I might need to tell them if it's serious, Wally.” Oliver could only blink as he saw Wally school his face of emotion that he'd only seen in Batman or the League of Assassins. He hadn't known that Wally was able to cut off his emotions that fast and efficiently. It was something that deeply disturbed Oliver and made his heart clench in fear. He was starting to feel like he wouldn't like what Wally had to say. God he wanted a drink already and he didn't even know the reason for Wally's pain.

Wally wasn't freaking out. He trusted his uncle a lot more than he would ever trust his parents. He knew that he would have to admit that his parents, namely his dad, beat and abandoned him. His dad had beaten him unconscious and then they'd packed up and left him in the house. Wally didn't feel too upset about that to be honest. It was worry over how the League and his friends would worry. He did not want everyone to treat him like he was breakable. Speedsters were more resilient than normal humans after all.

Uncle Barry and Uncle Hal were off world. Uncle Bruce was more rational than Uncle Ollie, but he wasn't ready for the entire League to know his secrets just yet. Uncle Ollie was more of a secret keeper when it came to keeping things from the League. Well, not really. Bats did that better than anyone. Still, Uncle Ollie could be won over and Star City seemed closer to home than Gotham. Besides, even if he didn't go to Uncle Bruce, he still had his trump card. Uncle Q.

Oliver watched him think, his own worry starting to rise. 'Shit, kid, what did you get into?' Oliver could only think. There were so many ideas forming in his head, ideas that made his blood curdle and boil. “Can I borrow your phone, Uncle Ollie?” Wally locked eyes with Oliver, determined for some odd reason. Oliver really wanted to say no and just demand that he tell him, but even he admitted he was soft when it came to his psuedo nephew. Quietly he handed over the phone and watched in curiosity as Wally called someone. 'Who is he calling? Everyone is on a mission….'

“Uncle Q? – Yeah. Yeah. It's Wally. --What? Yeah, I'm with Uncle Ollie. – Of course you knew that… You're like the Batman without the bat part. – Mm? Yeah 'm okay. Just a bit beat.” Oliver cringed as he downplayed his injuries, vaguely recognizing that this 'Uncle Q' must be Question. He hadn't know that Question and Wally were so close to warrant the use of 'uncle'. “Yeah they left and I – Wait, you found them? – So you're going to wipe their minds? – What about my digital info? Everyone who knew them knew they had a son and I don't think – Huh? Deleting my info? From everything? – Yeah, that sounds right. Go ahead and delete it all. – What? A new name? No, no Wally is just fine for me. – Oh, well I guess we can just see who I'll stay with and take it from there. – The papers?” Wally motioned for his bag and Oliver quickly handed it to him to see him ruffle through it to find a stack of papers.

“Yeah, I got it. – Who do I think I can… You know what, I have no idea. It'll be too weird to stay with Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris and I know Uncle Hal doesn't have room for a kid – Huh? Uncle Bruce? Well, yeah he's got the room and the money, but I don't think he'd appreciate a meta-kid, let alone Kid Flash in Gotham. – What? Ask Uncle Ollie?” Oliver's eyebrows shot up. 'Was he seriously talking about staying with someone? What happened to his parents? Whose mind was getting erased? Seriously, what the fuck.' Wally cringed as he looked at the shock and confusion on his uncle's face. “Well, yeah I guess I could. Star City is better than Gotham and – Huh? If Uncle Ollie says no I can stay with you?” Wally's eyes watered a little and he took a shaky breath, but whether it was from emotion or pain, Oliver couldn't tell. “Thanks Uncle Q… – Yeah, I know. Keep me updated? – Thank you...” Wally ended the call and shoved the phone back in Oliver's hands to wipe his eyes.

'So. What. The. Fuck!?' Oliver's mind was spinning and he shook himself to focus back on Wally. “So, kid, you want to tell me what's going on?” Oliver asked, a bit more demanding than he had first asked. Let's face it. He needed answers. Wally eyed him, a little fearfully. The fear in his eyes made Oliver just want to pull him into a hug and squeeze him until whatever scared him went away, but he couldn't. He was afraid to put Wally in anymore pain. Besides, it was beginning to seem like Wally was needing a home...which meant something went wrong in his home.

Wally closed his eyes and sighed. Courage he needed, but what he wanted even more than courage was the ability to be able to tell his uncle what was wrong without feeling like his world was about to crumble. He debated for about half an hour Speedster time before he finally just thrust the papers into Oliver's hands. “Kid?” Oliver questioned, confused as he looked from Wally to the papers. Wally just motioned for him to check the papers. So that's what Oliver did.

It had typical family information, address, social, and the like. It wasn't until he flipped through the papers a little bit more until he found signatures of Rudy and Mary West until the paragraph stating: “We understand that giving our child up for adoption is permanent….” Oliver only read until the part where it mentioned adoption. Rudy and Mary were giving their child up? Something didn't seem quite right. “We got them to sign the papers when they were signing a bunch of other things for school.” Wally's voice startled him. 'Wait, got them to…' Oliver couldn't believe what he was hearing. Wally had gotten his parents to give him up for adoption. Could it be true?

“Wally,” Oliver said slowly, carefully, “when you say you got them to 'sign the papers'… You got them to put you up for adoption?” Oliver's face had a look of pure shock and confusion. Wally nodded. “Why,” was the only word that came from Oliver's mouth at that point. Wally shifted uncomfortably and hissed in pain. “Uncle Ollie…” Wally began, his voice fading. “Uncle Ollie… this…” Wally gestured to himself. “Uncle Ollie, my parents did this…”

Anything and everything in Oliver's mind came to a halt. 'What the fuck –!?' Oliver was trying to process this, but he could only repeat those three words. Wally put himself up for adoption. Wally's parents had beaten him. Had…. Had they been beating him? Had they been doing this and Oliver hadn't noticed? Had no one noticed… “Wally...” Oliver's voice was thick with emotion. “Wally, how long...” His voice trailed off, not wanting to say it, to make it real. Wally looked into Oliver's eyes with a look of defeat. “From before I became Kid Flash.” Oliver almost had to strain to hear Wally's whispered words but when he did, a wave of red hot fury washed over him.

Oliver was furious. Wally's parents had been beating him for years… Treating him like he was something less than human. His hands itched for his bow and quiver. God, he wanted to run out right now, find those shitty excuse for parents and fill their bodies with arrows. It was such a murderous feeling that he almost felt like he could kill them with his anger and hatred alone.

Hearing a whimper of fear from Wally, he caught himself. Everything he was feeling must've shown on his face and the way that his hands twitched for his gear. He was scaring Wally. 'Okay Ollie, calm the fuck down.' He forced himself to slow his breathing and relaxed his battle tense body. It wouldn't do to scare the kid now. He'd seen child abuse victims and his getting angry and vicious would not help Wally to relax.

Oliver's anger turned to sorrow as he saw Wally shiver in either pain or fear. “Wally. Wally, I'm sorry. It's okay, Wally.” He slowly reached towards Wally, pulling him against him and holding him close and gently. “I'm so sorry.” He hadn't been there to protect Wally. No one had been there to protect him. No one except… Question.

“Wally, how does Question fit into this?” He saw Wally nibble on his lip nervously. “He found out and I – I went to him for help… and we came up with a plan…” Wally looked at the adoption papers. “We got the papers and filled everything out… got their signatures. Uncle Q has someone who's erasing their memories of me and everything about the Flash's identity.” Oliver listened, his body perfectly still as he held Wally. “And – and for the legal trail, he's going to erase everything… I'll just be another kid in the system until someone adopts me and –“ Wally pulled away to look at Oliver. “Can… can I stay with you, Uncle Ollie… ?” The hesitance and fear in Wally's voice broke Oliver's heart.

Shit. Shit, shit, shit. The kid was afraid Oliver would say no. That's what it was. That's what he heard when Wally was talking to Question. 'Oh, Hell, no.' Oliver wasn't about to let Wally think he meant so little to him that he would throw him out. No way. “Wally,” Oliver said, his voice gentle as he pulled back to look the kid in the eyes, “you can stay with me. If you want to, you're more than welcome to stay.” Never let it be said that Oliver Queen didn't tear up. He most certainly did now. “I love ya, kid.” Wally threw his arms around Oliver, sobbing into his shirt and Oliver just hung tightly to him.

What would they do when Batman found out? God, what about when Barry found out? And Hal? Oliver was mentally cringing at how Roy would rave once he found out. He gritted his teeth and forced the thoughts out of his head. Right now, Wally was more important. Wally came first.

Oliver waited until Wally's sobbing faded into sniffling and his trembling body was almost still enough for a Speedster. Oliver had taken Roy in and he knew that Roy would be okay with having Wally as an adopted brother. He had enough money to take care of a growing Speedster's special needs. He admitted that he was a good choice. Plus, he found the kid adorable. A little bit naive, but adorable none the less. He still found it a mystery as to why Roy, Dick, and Wally had become such a tight knit group.

Oliver pulled back when Wally was calm and kissed the top of Wally's head softly. “Hey, kid, I don't know about you, but I'm pretty hungry.” He couldn't help but chuckle when Wally turned red as his stomach growled at the mention of food. “What do you want? Pizza?” Wally nodded, embarrassed. “Pizza sounds good,” his voice was a little rough from crying, but he looked better. Oliver smiled and ordered pizzas to be delivered to the club, instructing the pizza to be delivered to the back door so he could pick it up.

When the pizzas arrived, Oliver could only stare as he watch Wally practically gobble pizzas whole. Even for a Speedster he must've been really hungry. Oliver had barely had two slices when Wally had finished his five pizzas. He still looked hungry so Oliver pushed the rest of his pizza over to Wally, watching as Wally finished it off. He was going to have to get some of those calorie bars from Barry to make sure that Wally always had something to keep his strength up.

“Wanna go back to my place?” The question took Wally by surprise. He had been getting drowsy and dozing off. Oliver was looking at him with concern and an emotion he couldn't quite recognize. It could've been fear. It could've been anger. He wasn't quite sure. Wally just nodded in response. It was enough for Oliver, who promptly smiled and helped Wally up. “We'll take the car.”

Back at Queen Manor.

Oliver helped Wally wobble into the living room, guiding him gently onto the couch. “I'll get you some juice and I think I have some Speedster strength pain medicine if you'd like some…?” Oliver lets his question trail off so that Wally can think. Wally decides that he's aching and speed healing doesn't mean there's no pain, so he nods. “Okay, just rest here. You can turn on the TV and watch whatever you like. I'll be back in a second.” Wally nods again and leans into Oliver's couch, luxurious as it is, it always made him feel small. Then again, the whole place is big. The TV is freaking big. Wally flips on the TV and just lets himself relax on the couch.

Oliver, in the meantime, is sifting through his first aid cabinet. There's a crap ton of medicine and surgical tools. Hey, he gets injured a lot. Never know when you might need it. He prided himself on being prepared for anything, having medicine for almost everything. This is one of those times when his pride is more like frustration as he searches for the Speedster pain medicine he had. It doesn't help that his thoughts are running free.

Oliver might be freaking out just a little bit. He just agreed to taken in Wally. God, what if Barry wanted Wally? He hadn't even told Bruce any of this yet. He probably should, he knows. He'll be fucked when Roy finds out. His relationship with Roy is worse than that of Superboy and Superman. At least those two can work together and meet with the Kents regularly now. Roy still doesn't willing let himself be in a room with Oliver.

Oliver's sharp hearing picks up the sound of a loud thud on the floor and he knows it sounds like a body. Before he knows it, he's cussing up a storm, grabbing a knife and flying into the living room, prepared to face whatever was out there. He should probably have grabbed the displayed bow and arrow set that he has, but his instinct to protect Wally won out over logic and he's too busy running like a bat-outta-Hell to help Wally.

What he sees in the living room scares him so much, he wishes he had grabbed his bow and arrow, and maybe a giant shield because he feels much too naked and vulnerable to deal with an enraged Roy. Oliver's form freezes with the knife forward to attack. “R-Roy?” His voice draws the attention of the distraught teenage, dragging it from Wally on the floor. Roy's looking between Oliver and his quivering friend on the floor, face red with anger. “What the fuck Ollie!?” Roy yells at Oliver, causing him to flinch.

“Uhhh….” Oliver trails off, unable to think properly to formulate a response. Roy stalks over to Oliver and grabs his shirt, muscles tensed. “What the fuck happened to Wally!?” Oliver squeaks – no, he's manly – he grumbles. Oliver looks at Wally, who's looking at him with a panicked look. Wally's face is pale and he's trembling in fear. It's that obvious fear that snaps Oliver out of his submissive position. He twists out of Roy's hold and grabs Roy, dragging him into where he'd been looking for Speedster pain medicine.

“Shit Roy, you can't do that in front of Wally!” He keeps his voice low to keep from further frightening Wally. Roy's just startled enough at the sudden turn in behavior that it breaks his anger. “Wha- What?” Oliver continues to scold Roy, uncharateristically. “Wally's been through a ton of shit tonight and he doesn't need us scaring him anymore.” Obviously the wrong thing to say because Roy's anger returns. Roy has just enough sense to keep his voice down.

“Shit, Ollie, what the fuck! Who the fuck did that!?” Roy's fists are clenched tightly and Oliver wonders if he should run to another room and just yell to explain the situation from a distance. He doesn't want to be on the receiving end of Roy's punches again. He wants to tell Roy to 'calm down' but even he has a hard time trying to keep calm when he thinks about Wally's pathetic parents. “His parents.” Roy's mouth opens and Oliver thinks he's about to bust a blood vessel yelling, so he covers Roy's mouth with his hand. “If you can calm the fuck down, I'll tell you what I know!” Oliver hisses in Roy's ear.

Once Roy calms down enough, Oliver explains what he knows. He tells him how he found Wally. About the conversation he heard with Question and the adoption papers. The hardest part to tell is about how his parents had hurt Wally. He's not sure how long it's been going on, but it's obviously been a long time if Wally and Question had planned his adoption enough to have them sign it without their knowledge.

Roy is pissed. How long had this been going on? How the fuck didn't he know? How could nobody know? Why didn't Wally tell anyone? It's that last question that leaves Roy feeling more broken than angry. Wally, Dick, and Roy had been close from day one. They shared a bond that went beyond blood. Roy thought that Wally of all people would tell them if someone was hurting him – if his parents were hurting him. But he hadn't. Did they not trust him? Shit. What if they'd done something to discourage his telling them.

Oliver can see the process going on in Roy's head and he doesn't envy him. Oliver had thought about all of that himself. He's not sure he could stop himself from joining Roy if he'd gone after Wally's parents. It's a lucky thing that Roy restrains himself. “What now?” Roy asks Oliver, who can only shrug. “Barry and Hal are off-world still. Question is taking care of his parents and I'm not keen on telling Bruce just yet. Wally needs time to recover.” Roy is nodding. “For now, just be with Wally, I guess.” Roy nods. He can do that. Wally needs him, he'll be there.

Roy reaches out and snatches a bottle, lightening fast. “You were looking for this right?” He shows the Speedster pain medicine up for Oliver to see, who can only pout at being beat to the task. Seriously, he'd been searching for longer than Roy. How was Roy able to find it first? He sighs, grabbing a glass of juice and following Roy out to the living room.

Wally's back on the couch by now, facing the TV. He looks through the TV instead of watching whatever show was playing. His taunt body makes Roy wince, realizing that he did that. It would take a bit of time to help Wally to feel safe enough to relax. “Wally?” Roy questions, getting Wally's attention. “We brought your medicine.” Roy hands a few pills to Wally, who takes the pills and pops them in his mouth before grabbing the juice from Oliver and gulping it down.

Roy plops down next to Wally, heavier and more carelessly than Oliver would've, which makes him cringe at how wrong the sudden movement is. Wally doesn't flinch or jump like Oliver thought he would. In fact, it seems to make Wally loosen up a bit. Oliver eyes this new development with interest. Obviously treating Wally like an invalid was not the way to go. Thank God, Roy was there. Oliver plops down on the other side of Wally, mimiciking Roy. It's enough that Wally finally relaxes between the two of them. “So, what'cha watching?” Wally's attention turns back to the TV. “Uhh… a show.” Roy snickers. “Duhhh. What kind of show?” Wally kind of glares at Roy, but there's no real heat behind it. He's relaxed.

Wally focuses his attention on the TV, taking in the show airing. “Looks like a documentary about bears to me.” His voice is a bit shaky, but he tries to force sarcasm into it. “What do you think Roy?” Oliver has to snicker at Wally's reaction. It makes him feel a little bit lighter. Not much, though. He knows that Roy feels the same because Roy barks a laugh, but his body is still tight with emotion. “You mean like Oliver?”

“Hey!” Wally and Roy laugh as Oliver looks offended by Roy's words. It's light-hearted banter. It's the closest Oliver and Roy have come to being friendly. Oliver finally just huffs and rolls his eyes, a smile on his face. “If I'm a bear, I'm the most awesome bear there is.” Roy eyes him, judging. “I think you meant fuzziest bear there is.” Oliver gasps and holds a hand on his chest. “I am not fuzzy!” Wally laughs, his body shaking, wincing in pain. Oliver rubs his hand over his face. “Not much at least.” Roy just shakes his head, smirking as Wally tries to control his laughter.

“Oh God, you two, quit it. Laughing hurts,” Wally wipes tears from his eyes. Oliver and Roy look appropriately chastised. “Sorry, kid.” Roy just rubs Wally's arm, gently in apology. Wally shakes his head, a smile still on his face. “It's okay.” Wally yawns a little bit. “Tired, Wally?” Roy asks, voice oddly gentle to Oliver's ears. Wally just nods. His wounds ache, but he's safe and his stomach is full.

Wally squeaks a little as Roy reaches out and picks him up carefully. “Still have my room here, Ollie?” Oliver nods, his eyes sad for Wally. “Good, you and I will sleep there, okay Wally?” Roy says as he begins walking up to his old room with Oliver behind him. Wally nods, his eyelids feeling heavy with exhaustion. Oliver thinks it's sweet when Wally leans his head on Roy's shoulder and closes his eyes.

Stepping into the room, Oliver moves first to pull the covers down so Roy can set Wally down easily. They don't change his clothes. It's not that it would be weird. It's just that they don't want to wake him or cause him any unnecessary pain. Wally is dead asleep by this point and it's likely nothing could wake him, but they speak in hushed tones just in case.

“What now?” Roy asks Oliver as he strips to his underclothes and climbs in beside Wally. “Question is handling all the details with his parents and identity.” Roy nods, absendmindedly brushing Wally's hair from his face. “He asked if I could take him in.” Oliver wants to take a step back when Roy's demanding eyes meet his. “Like adoption?” Oliver nods, unsure of how Roy will react. Unlike Oliver's unease over his reaction, however, Roy just nods again. Honestly, Roy doesn't care. He just wants Wally to be safe and happy.

There's the silent worry about whether Wally will recover from this. His injuries are deep, but it's the emotional scars that are even deeper. “He got himself out, you know.” Roy's not sure what Oliver means. “It seems he went to Question for help to get away from his parents.” Roy knows that usually in situations like Wally's, the police or state intervene and get the victims help. It's not easy for a victim to escape. “He's strong,” Roy says, taking the covers and covering them both up. It's the silent question 'but is he strong enough' that worries them.

Oliver presses a kiss to Wally's temple. His sleeping pseudo-nephew has gone through so much alone. If he wants to stay with Oliver and join Oliver's family, well, Oliver will not protest. Oliver will be more than happy to have Wally as family. Heck, they're practically family as is. He knows Roy won't complain. Roy loves Wally just as much, if not more than, Oliver.

Oliver turns out the light as he leaves the room and closes the door to let Roy and Wally sleep. He can't help but wonder what tomorrow will be like. What's going to happen when Hal and Barry get back? _Shit _Batman is going to find out soon. Question is deleting Wally's personal information. Double shit. He's going to know soon. Oliver cringes. He could feign ignorance, but Wally doesn't deserve the attention.__

__'Next time I'm having Roy do it before he goes to sleep.'_ _

__Oliver takes out his League communicator and looks at it for a second before placing it on his ear with a sigh. 'Now or never, Ollie.' He might prefer never, but it has to be done. Oliver places the call. “Batman.” Okay, that low ominous voice is not intimidating. “Heyyy Bats. How's it going?” Sarcasm was always Oliver's first reaction to trouble. That was obviously not about to stop. “What is it, Oliver?”_ _

__“You – um, might like to know that – um, Wally's here with me.” He takes a deep breath. “He's not going back to his home.” The silence stretches on. “What do you mean 'he's not going back to his home'?”_ _

__“His parents are gone. They beat and abandoned him.” It was best to be blunt after all, but the reality of it is that hearing the truth out loud was painful. “Question is wiping their memories and any digital information of him.” Despite the silence Oliver had the unnerving feeling that Batman was about to kill someone with his glare. “You're sure.” It was more of a statement than a question and that said that Batman believed him. “Yeah.”_ _

__There were several more awkward lengths of silences that Oliver were sure Batman was spending seething in anger as Oliver recounted his tale. Going over the list of Wally's injuries wasn't fun either. The scarring had proven that Wally had been beaten often and for a long time since before he'd become a Speedster. It was a lot to process, but it needed to be dealt with._ _

__When he'd finished explaining more about Question and his role was when Batman spoke up. “I'll get in touch with him and see if there's anything I can do.” Oliver just 'hm'-ed his agreement. “Barry and Hal will be back in the afternoon. I'll meet them when they come back on the Watchtower and explain.” There was another pause and for a second Oliver was wondering if Batman was going to say something about how Barry would probably take Wally in, but he didn't. “Take care of him, Oliver. If you need anything just let me know.” Oliver smiled and thanked him before the call ended._ _

__It had gotten late and Oliver was really contemplating whether or not he wanted to go out on the streets or not. Thinking back to Wally's injuries a bit of rage took over at how a child's parents could do that to their own kid. He checked on Wally and Roy real quick before he left the mansion and headed back to the Foundry. He had some anger to work out and there was no better place than on the streets catching criminals. Green Arrow was going to be a little brutal tonight and if he found any domestic abusers he couldn't feel bad for giving them a few more bumps and broken bones than normal._ _


	2. A Family of His Choosing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone has to adjust to they way things have turned out. Some have a lot more adjusting when Wally deems his desire to join the archer family.  
> Roy and Oliver decide that they are in this for the long haul.

Waking up next to Roy wasn't unusual for Wally. It was warm, comforting, and he found security in his archer brother figure. Roy had fallen asleep, holding onto Wally and Wally was fine with that. He was just fine with laying in bed as the morning light streamed in. Roy was safe. If Oliver took Wally in then Roy and Wally would be brother by law and that was something that made him smile.

“Whatcha smilin' about, Walls?” Wally was a little surprised to find Roy's eyes on him, lids partially closed from sleep. He reached out and flicked Wally's nose a little causing him to giggle. “It's been a while since I woke up like this.” Roy raised an eyebrow. “Like this?” Wally nodded, a slight blush rising to his cheeks from embarrassment. “Happy… safe...” Roy snaked his arm around Wally's middle and pulled him closer, subsequently cuddling him. “Mmm.. it does feel good, doesn't it?” Wally remained silent, but the way he nestled against Roy was enough for him to know that Wally felt the same.

They must've fallen asleep again because the next thing they know there's a knock at the door. “Roy? Wally? Breakfast is ready.” Oliver seems to know that the mention of food catches a Speedster's attention because Wally untangles himself from Roy, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. Roy groans at the rude awakening, but he thinks it's fine. Wally looks better now, even cute.

Roy grumbles under his breath about Oliver being an annoying alarm clock. He follows as Wally stumbles out the door, clothes ruffled and hair sticking up. It makes Roy chuckle. Sure, enough he can smell the scents of breakfast – bacon, eggs, biscuits, pancakes, grits, oatmeal… Oliver went all out. The metabolism of a Speedster is a fearsome thing, but Oliver has no problem providing enough food for a Speedster and he noticed that Wally looked oddly thin for a Speedster. He thinks about asking if Wally's parents had fed him properly, but grimaces when he realizes they probably hadn't.

It makes Oliver smile when Roy helps spoon tons of food onto Wally's plate as Wally rubs his sleepy eyes. Roy is a good brother to Wally, even if they aren't related by blood. It's adorable when Roy reaches over halfway through breakfast and wipes bits of egg off his cheek. He's not sure how that egg got there, but whatever. Speedsters are a whole other phenomenon.

“So...” Everyone's finishing eating, even Wally. Personally, Oliver doesn't want to bring meeting with Batman up because it will stress Wally. Stressing Wally is something that will stress Roy and a stressed Roy is one of the most volatile beings. He's not sure if he could inadvertently cause another blow out between him and Roy, but he thinks if it's for Wally's sake, he'll take things in stride.

“Batman is going to meet with Flash and Green Lantern when they get back today.” Wally shifts, almost like he wants to perk up with happiness and cringe back in fear. “They're due back today?” Roy asks, his gaze trailing Wally's actions from the corner of his eyes. Oliver nods as he gets up to take dishes to the kitchen (he does have housekeeping but for now it's best it's just the three of them). “This afternoon.” Roy takes dishes into the kitchen behind Oliver and by the little stumble, they can tell Wally's following, albeit a bit slow today.

“What do you want to do, Wally?”

The overwhelming silence on Wally's part is enough to have Oliver and Roy look at him. Wally wishes they wouldn't. How can he tell Uncle Barry, who is _Flash_ – one of the founding members of the _Justice League_ , that he couldn't stop his family from abusing him? What kind of sidekick does that make Wally? Just imaging telling Uncle Barry and Uncle Hal is enough to make Wally's body tremble with shame and fear.

And then there's that thought. Wally knows enough about victims and trauma through being Kid Flash. Even if he doesn't want to admit it, he's been a victim for almost all of his life. He's going to upset them and upset people, in Wally's experience, usually use extreme measures to release their tension.

Wally feels someone's hand run through his ginger hair, jolting him from his horrific thoughts. Looking for the owner, his eyes catch with Roy's eyes as Roy runs his fingers through Wally's hair. Wally's face scrunches up in confusion but it feels so good that he just doesn't care why. All the terrible thoughts, the feelings of fear, seem to just fade away. Roy would never hurt him. Neither would Uncle Ollie.

“It's okay, Wally.” Roy cards his fingers through Wally's hair. It feels a bit odd to see his adopted son so at ease that he's practically petting Wally. Yet, it looks so natural to Roy. He's not uncomfortable at all with his fingers in the boy's ginger hair. It makes Oliver smile. When Wally had begun to shake and tremble, Oliver wasn't sure what to do. Roy, however, seemed to know exactly what to do. Oliver wishes he had that kind of bond with Wally so he could help him. If he ends up adopting Wally, he knows, he will.

“Do you want us to be there with you?” Wally's eyes shift to Oliver and it makes Oliver's heart squeeze to see the disbelief there. “We can be there with you, if you want.” He watches as Wally chews on his lower lip, nervously. “Would you?” It's soft and Wally's voice cracks, but they both hear him and smile gently to reassure him. “Not even Superman could hold us back,” Oliver tells him. He can tell that even Roy believes that sentiment. Roy looks like he'd kill someone if they dared try to keep him away from Wally.

Roy's not the type to stay inactive but he knows that Wally, when he's not Kid Flash, loves to spend time watching movies. It's one of the things that Dick, Wally, and Roy make a marathon out of. Oliver jokingly calls it their “date nights” and despite how that annoys Roy, he has to agree – but it's between friends, brothers.  Wally loves those nights, which is why, after Oliver and Roy check on Wally's wounds, Roy and Wally spend their morning on the couch, watching movies and picking on each others' movie tastes.

While Roy and Wally are watching movies, Oliver spends his morning looking into the situation between Rudolph and Mary West and their former son, Wally. Oliver has connections, which is how he is able to obtain police reports and school complaints about possible abuse in the West home. It grinds Oliver's gears to read that Rudolph convinced the police and school to write it off as bullying at school. Wally's speed healing doesn't help his case either. Wounds that would send one to a hospital heal too fast for any official action to be taken.

Oliver's had his issues with Star City's police force, but the lack of motivation on Central City's police force about near makes him bust a vein. Barry's on the police force there. Oliver's not blaming Barry. The case was taken on by different precinct so Barry probably didn't even get the case file. Oliver wants to bang his head on the wall from the frustration. He has no doubt that that precinct has dirty cops and if Green Arrow ever gets his hands on them, they will regret it.

After Oliver gets over the issue with the police, he calls Question to inquire about the situation. Oliver and Question aren't the best of friends. If anything they are more like acquaintances, members of the Justice League together. Asking about what happened with the situation is extremely rewarding when Question reports that their minds have been wiped of Wally and of Barry and Wally's identities. Question also mentions that he might have tipped the police in Chicago that the couple are involved in the drug cartel there. It's not true, but Oliver feels a swell of joy at the implication that the couple will have a hard time getting jobs.

Question also tells him more about the legalities that he's changing. Wally is now a ward of the state, staying at a foster home – well, not truly because he's at Oliver's, but he's happy with that. Wally's personal background has also been changed to say that he was given up by the Wests and has been in the system for a while. Academics have been altered to show that he attended Central City for a short period before transferring to a home schooling situation for his genius. That bothers Oliver a little. It makes him sad to hear that Wally wasn't situated enough at his school to make friends who would miss him.

Oliver gets to know Question and how he found out about Wally. Turns out Question was in Central City looking into another one of his conspiracies involving the Central City Zoo and how the animals are being drugged to become more human-like for a world wide take-over (Oliver ignores those details). During his stay, he came across a young ginger child who really didn't want to go home. Normally, Question would just slip a memo to the police about the child and possible abuse, but with that child Question noticed some important, small details.

The way the child fidgets is his first clue. It's a noticeable twitch that one would think came from too much caffeine or sugar. Question notices the way that he eats a bit faster than everyone else from his lunch-box (which seems meager to him). The way his eyes dart about, taking in all the details is another clue. Despite the shy, withdrawn appearance, Question can tell that he resembles another figure that he's met.

After watching him for a little longer, Question sees a flash of limbs as the child grabs a newspaper that darts out in the wind. It settles it, it's Kid Flash in his civilian identity. Question was careful about approaching him, he'd said and then he casually slipped in a question to 'KF'. It had taken Wally a moment to recognize Question, which Oliver finds funny because Question dresses and acts a bit oddly, unlike anyone else.

Anyways, they talk for a bit. Question bought him a meal fit for a Speedster and once Wally is relaxed enough. Question told him that he knew. It upset Oliver to hear how upset Wally had become when he learned Question knew about what his parents did to him. Wally had immediately refuted it and excused himself. After that it had taken several days to convince Wally to meet with Question again.

It took several more meetings with Wally for Wally to trust Question enough to let him in. Question told Oliver how amazed he'd been at Wally for being able to hide his pain from Barry and the others. Heroes are trained to spot things that are wrong. He'd already picked up on the ways that Wally would flinch back minutely or fall silent when someone reprimanded him. It was a shock that others, who had spent more time with Wally, hadn't picked up on those actions.

Oliver felt guilty about not being able to see the big picture. Sure, he'd picked up on the fact that Wally was more shy out of uniform and he was more painfully unwilling to let himself be touched by adults, but Oliver had thought it was something else. If Oliver was feeling this guilty, he could only imagine how Roy felt.

“Thank you,” Oliver tells Question. “If you hadn't have found out…” Question 'hums' on the other end of the phone. “Any number of things could have happened. You could've found out when Wally slipped up. Wally could've been killed by his parents. Wally could've run away… I'm just glad I was able to intervene.” Oliver nods along, forgetting that Question can't see him. “I'll stop by when Barry and Hal get back. I'm sure they'll have questions about the plan.” They say their 'good-byes' and the phone clicks as they each hang up.

Oliver sighs and looks at the clock. He's been talking to Question for several hours; it's almost lunchtime. His stomach growls and he groans. If his stomach is growling, he wonders what Wally's stomach sounds like. He pops his head into the living room where Roy and Wally are watching movies. “Hey Roy, it's almost lunch. I'm sorry Wally, did you get a snack?”

Wally and Roy peek their heads over the couch. “Roy got me some snacks so it's okay. I am getting hungry though.” Roy chuckles and ruffles Wally's hair. “Pig.” Wally glares at him playfully. “Slob!” Oliver can't help but laugh through his hand. As soon as he does so Wally and Roy both turn to and glare. He turns his laugh into a cough. “Well then… I ordered pizzas so it's on its way soon.” Wally whoops in the air. He does love his pizza. Roy and Oliver grin.

“So, what are you watching?” Oliver walks over to the couch and plops beside Wally. Roy shrugs. “Some supernatural Japanese show.” Wally looks a bit insulted. “It's not just any supernatural Japanese show – it's _Kamen Rider Ghost!_ He got killed in the first episode and now he has to find 15 Eyecons or else he won't be revived.” Oliver gives Roy a strange look and he just rolls his eyes and shrugs in return. “Sounds interesting,” Oliver opts to say.

Oliver sits with them as they wait on the pizza to arrive. His mouth twitches in a smile when he sees Wally hesitate for a second before snuggling against Roy. He has to school his features when he sees Roy wrap an arm around Wally. It's so sweet Oliver thinks it might give him cavities. Secretly, Oliver is a bit jealous and wishes he was in the middle though. He'd pout later.

Lunch goes about as well as can be expected when you're waiting to hear from Batman and an angry pair of heroes. It took a bit of coaxing to convince Wally to keep eating. Oliver and Roy could tell that he was worried about the reactions of his Uncle and pseudo-uncle. He kept flicking his eyes towards the door as if he expected Flash to burst in the room at any moment with Green Lantern hot on his tail.

Roy and Oliver were finally satisfied when Wally ate three larges pizzas. Well, they had wanted him to eat more, but they could understand and empathize with how he was feeling. A message came over Oliver's phone stating: “Getting ready to meet now.” It made Oliver anxious, but he kept those emotions down and suggested that they order a variety of cakes from a local bakery for dessert. Wally had wanted to try their new dessert after all. It was a sweet red bean bun with the imprint of an arrow crossed with a lightning bolt in honor of the friendship between the two cities' heroes.

When Wally smiled, looking excited for the first time since his arrival, it was all Roy could do to stop himself from hugging the greasy faced young hero. He exchanged a look of approval with Oliver. And they both looked on with a smile when Wally ate the desserts joyfully, getting bits of sweet cream and bean paste on his cheeks.

Oliver gritted his teeth, stressed as his comm beeped with an incoming transmission. He could see the way that Wally froze and how Roy looked over at him sharply. “Yeah? - What!? What do you mean they're being restrained!? What did you do!? - Oh, really is that all?” Oliver rolls his eyes sarcastically even though Batman can't see it. He's pissed and he tries to push it down because it's scaring Wally and Roy, who's holding Wally by this point, is giving Oliver a death glare that he does not want to be on the receiving end of.

Wally trembles in Roy's arms, snuggling into him for comfort as Roy glares at Oliver, even though it's not his fault. “Fine, fine. Just – just send them here, but for fuck's sake tell them they need to calm the fuck down or I'm not letting them in,” Oliver grinds out before he hangs up. Later, he'll have a minor panic attack about hanging up on Batman, but right now he needs to check up on Wally.

“Wally?” Oliver keeps his voice soft, wiping all traces of his upset feelings from his face. “Wally, it's okay. Barry and Hal are coming to check up on you. Is that okay?” Oliver's heart has broken way too many times since he picked up Wally last night and it doesn't stop his heart from breaking again when he sees Wally give him a shaky nod. Wally's eyes are partially glazed over and Oliver just wishes he could suddenly develop the ability to time travel so he could go back and save Wally from this.

Oliver exchanges a glance with Roy and they silently agree that he'll continue to hold Wally and Oliver will meet the two heroes at the door. He watches Roy pick up the young Speedster and carry him to the couch in the living room. A sliver of a smile graces his lips as Wally snuggles into Roy more. 'Adorable,' he thinks and that is something he'll never say out loud or else he'll wind up naked, hanging from a wire some night with 'Fucking Idiot' painted on him. Roy would do it, he knows.

A flurry of knocks has Oliver rushing to the door only to open it and find Barry and Hal, their faces red and chests heaving. They make a move to shove passed Oliver, but he holds out his hands firmly. “Now you two will be fucking calm or I swear I will shove an arrow through your eye socket and Roy will help me tear your bodies limb from limb, got it?”

The way their eyes widened at his threat was comical. Any other time and it would've had Oliver laughing his ass off and holding it against them as high quality blackmail material. Now, however, wasn't the time. He could hardly bring himself to not snap at them any further.

  
When they nodded, Oliver led them into the living room. They were met with Wally, curled up against Roy's side. Oliver could see faint shivers run through Wally's body, but when he noticed them, Wally sat up, straightening himself and seemed to pull back all the fear that he'd allowed Oliver and Roy to see. It was heartbreaking how his face paled and how he let all the emotions drain from his face.

“Wally,” Barry started, kneeling before Wally only to frown when Wally leaned more into Roy. “I heard what happened.” Wally only blinked at Barry, remaining silent. “Wally, why didn't you come to us,” Hal asked from behind Barry. Again, Wally didn't answer them, choosing to look at them blankly. Barry exchanged a worried look with Hal.

When Barry reached out to touch his nephew, Wally flinched a little, trying to hide it by wrapping an arm around Roy. Barry quickly pulled back, eyes lighting up with anger and a desire to murder his brother- and sister-in-law. Wally saw the look in his eyes and turned his face, burying it against Roy's shoulder.

Roy glared at Barry, daring him to come closer. Oliver took a step beside the two young heroes with a dark look for the two older heroes. When they looked at him, he mouthed 'Arrows', reminding them of his threat and letting them know just how serious he was. If they aggravated Wally, they would learn what it was like to be a pincushion, he guaranteed it.

Barry sighed softly and ran a hand through his windswept hair. “Wally… I'm sorry.” Wally shifted and looked at Barry with his brows furrowed. Obviously he didn't understand why his uncle was apologizing or for what reason. When Barry noticed, he explained himself. “I'm sorry I failed you,” he said, voice quivering slightly. “I… I'm such an idiot for not realizing. You and Iris are the most important people to me and yet… I didn't know… I'm so sorry,” Barry's voice broke, full of sorrow and guilt.

Wally frowned at Barry, but before he could open his mouth Hal chipped in. “Me too, kid.” Hal bit his lip, nervously fidgeting in a rare display for complicated emotions. “I should've known… I wanted to punch them in their face the first time I met them. For some reason they pissed me off, but I just… I thought I was imagining it…” Anyone could see that Hal was mentally berating himself for not noticing and not having taken advantage of his feelings to punch Wally's ex-parents.

Wally turned a frown at Hal too. Eyes flickering to Oliver and Roy, he looked for something and whatever he saw had him looking back at his Uncle Hal and Uncle Barry. “It's not your fault,” he told them firmly. “I was too weak… When I became Kid Flash I should've said something… Should've done something…. But I just…” he paused, face scrunched up as he looked for words. “I got used to it… It never became easier, but I healed faster and it just became something I thought wasn't important anymore… It felt like nothing could change it.”

The four listened intently to Wally. Wally sighed and rubbed his eyes with a hand. “I didn't think about it. Not until Uncle Question came around.” Wally couldn't see it, but Oliver and Roy definitely could see the spark of jealousy in Hal and Barry's eyes at the mention that Question was the one to find out and save Wally when it could've been them. Wally, oblivious of their feelings, continued. “He helped me realize I could do something. That there were ways to get help. He helped me get the papers for legal separation.”

Wally smiled a little. “I'm officially an orphan.” Seeing the sadness and upset faces, he amended his statement. “For now, at least.” Hal and Barry's brows furrowed in confusion and concern as they tried to process Wally as an orphan. “What do you mean 'for now'?” Hal asked Wally softly. Wally blinked, seeming to realize that they didn't know. Even Roy was looking like he needed answers. “I asked Uncle Oliver if he could adopt me.”

Oliver winces as Wally just comes right out and says it. It's not really the kind of thing you just blurt out. Wally had asked his pseudo-uncle to adopt him instead of his actual uncle. Barry looked devastated and Roy kept blinking like his brain was on the fritz. Hal was focused on Barry's reactions like Oliver was and they could both tell that Barry was mentally falling apart.

“Wha- but- Wally, why-” Barry couldn't continue to ask. Was it because he didn't notice sooner? Was Wally afraid that Barry would treat him like Mary and Rudy did? Did he not trust Barry as much as Barry thought he did? “Barry, breathe. Slow down.” God, he was panicking and freaking out and freaking _vibrating with heartbreak_.

“Uncle Barry.” Suddenly there was a small form up against his chest, snuggled up. Wally was warm, practically radiating heat. “Do you love me?” Barry blinked, the question catching him off guard even in his panicked state. It took him a few moments to process the question. He looked at Wally with wide eyes, wondering if Wally had thought he didn't love him. “Of course I love you Wally,” Barry said, blinking tears from his eyes as he wrapped his arms around his nephew.

Wally was trembling, but he snuggled even close against his uncle. “I love you too, Uncle Barry, but I couldn't stay there.” Barry looks confused and still kind of hurt, but he also looks like he's trying to understand.

“My parents” he says rolling the word 'parents' on his tongue like a bad taste “may not remember me, but we can't wipe everyone's memory of me and when someone discovers the inconsistencies they will probably ask you and Aunt Iris about it.” It was definitely something to be concerned about.

Oliver could definitely see why just taking Wally away from his parents wouldn't have worked. There was no physical evidence of abuse and he would have just been taken back to his parents if he was found by the police. Even with their memories erased, people would still most likely try and place him back with his parents and if Oliver knows anything, it's that there was always a chance things could go wrong again.

Judging from what Oliver's heard under the table, there's a good chance that moving in with Barry and Iris could be a seriously bad idea. If Wally's parents were involved in some shady shit then staying in Central City as Wally, even if it were with Barry and Iris, is not a good idea. Wally would be better off in another city with a new name, or at least a new last name.

God, he can see the way understanding fills their eyes. It hurts. Oliver hates it. Barry hates it. Hal hates it. Roy hates it. They all hate it. Circumstances won't allow Wally to be with Barry. His only choice is to be adopted by another hero family.

Oliver's eyebrows furrow in thought. “Wally,” he says carefully. “You came here.” Wally nods, frowning a little in confusion. “You came to me. Why did you choose me?” Wally frowns for a moment.

“Uncle Question told me you wouldn't say no,” Wally says, looking over at Oliver warily.

“And I'm not,” Oliver says quickly to eliminate any dark thoughts that Oliver doesn't want Wally around. “I just want to know why you didn't choose Hal or Bruce.”

Oliver feels a little silly now that he's said that out loud. He feels even more silly when Wally looks at him like he's a tad touched in the head. “Uncle Hal doesn't want kids.” Hal's face instantly darkens, saddened by Wally's words. He hasn't wanted kids, he knows, but he loves Wally to death. “And Uncle Hal works off planet a lot. Nobody would let him keep me.” It's painful to admit it but Wally is right. Hal knows.

“Uncle Bruce is Batman,” Wally continues. “He's taken in Dick, but he wouldn't want me. I'm a meta-kid and being his adopted son is more publicity than I need.” Barry doesn't miss the way Wally's eyes darken a little when he talks about Dick. “I'm too much work.” Roy didn't miss the way Barry, Oliver, and Hal paled at that. He wasn't sure they were horrified with the Wally was putting himself down or the thought that Batman probably has a bug somewhere in here that he's listening to. Personally, Roy just hated the way Wally talked about himself.

Roy's arms tightened around Wally as he pulled him close. “Bats' place is too gloomy for you. You just chose Oliver's because it's not a creepy mansion,” Roy quipped, trying to make Wally smile. It worked, Wally smiled and gave a small laugh. “It is kind of dark, isn't it?” Roy nodded. “The darkest. Dick keeps things on the fly but Gotham is seriously forever night. I swear the Bats have night vision from being in total darkness all the damn time.” Everyone in the room chuckled at bit at Roy's declaration.

“Can.. Can I stay with Oliver…? Can I stay with you..?” Wally's voice wavered as he looked at his uncle first before looking at Oliver, nerves apparent on his features. Roy wanted to speak up and just tell them that Wally was going to stay with him and that was that, but he grudgingly admitted that he was hardly financially stable enough to feed a second person let alone someone with a Speedster's metabolism. Oliver was the best bet.

Roy ran his fingers through Wally's hair as he watched Barry smile sadly. “Of course you can, Wally,” he assured his nephew. Oliver chimed in his agreement. “You can stay with me as long as you want, kid. I'd be happy to have a son who doesn't run off stabbing people with arrows.” Roy looked at Oliver with a raised eyebrow. As if Oliver didn't do the same thing. He seemed to know that and wouldn't meet Roy's eyes.

“Kid. Wally, you're welcome wherever you want to be. We love you,” Hal said, trying to look more confident with his emotional statement than he really was. Hal didn't do mushy things, but he was trying, even if it was a bit comical. It did help to disperse the tense atmosphere with everyone being amused at Hal's discomfort.

Wally reached out to both Hal and Barry after he untangled himself from Roy and he snuggled against them both when their arms wrapped around him. Wally hoped Roy would ignore the happy little sounds he made when Barry ran his fingers through Wally's hair. Softly Barry whispered words of comfort and love to Wally.

When Wally settled back against Roy's side, Barry taking his other side and Hal taking Barry's other side on the large couch, Oliver slipped away. He picked up the documents regarding adoption that Wally had presented to him when he'd picked the kid up. He always hated legal actions, but this would be perfectly fine. It was worth it.

Oliver found himself in his office that he used when he did work from home (he could do that being the owner of Queens Consolidated). He settled in at his desk, flipping a light on for better viewing as he reviewed the document. He'd have to call his lawyers after he filled everything out. It was a lot. It was a fucking nightmare of complicated shit. With Wally's wellbeing in mind, he began to fill everything out.

It took almost two hours and gave him a headache worse than that time he'd been in Central and found himself thrown into a wall by Flash's crazy gorilla friend (okay, not a friend, but it was usually Flash's responsibility so he could blame him). He rubbed his temples and put in a call to his lawyers, vocally pressing them to ensure that the process would remain out of the limelight for as long as possible. He'd have to keep Wally out of the way of the insane media, maybe claim him as a young cousin who'd lost his parents. Still, he'd make it work, even if he had to go to Batman for assistance.

Wally was leaning against Roy with his head on Roy's shoulders, eyelids half closed as the stress of having to tell his uncle faded away. He didn't blame Wally one bit for being more tired than a night on patrol. Wally's life had been a literal Hell and no one had known. Still he was proud of him. He'd gotten himself out of that situation with help from Question. Roy had never been especially open to the unusual, no faced detective but for what he did for Wally, Roy would have to rethink that.

Roy's arm wrapped around Wally, glanced at the doorway when a tired looking Oliver walked in. He must've been doing some official business. Oliver'd always hated the legal matters of the company and he just had that look like someone had dragged him through the mud so Roy assumed he'd been dealing with matters for Wally. Oliver gave Roy a slight nod letting him know he was right. The Bat family had their silent language and so did the archers, even if they weren't on the best terms, they knew.

Wally sighed and snuggled against Roy, eyes closing as he fell asleep. Soon he would be joining their archer family, the thought made Roy smile a bit smugly. Had Barry and Hal been there he would've sent them a look of pure victory. Wally was going to be in the archer family, not the Lantern family, not the Flash family (well not officially) and he was certainly not joining the Bat family (sorry Dick). Wally was theirs. He could tell Oliver was thinking the same thing when he looked at Wally and grinned.

“How'd it go,” Roy whispered. Oliver nodded as he silently tip-toed over to the pair on the couch. “Everything seems to be working out,” Oliver whispered back. “The League will probably have some issues” Roy made a face at the mention “but it's not up to them.” Let the League mutter their problems, neither Roy nor Oliver was going to let their opinions matter. Not when it came to Wally.

Oliver carefully sat beside Wally, shifting his weight so he wouldn't awaken the sleeping Speedster. He ran a critical eye over Wally. There were still wounds, injuries, and Oliver knew that beneath his clothes, the kid had some scars that made their blood boil with rage. He hesitated for a moment before he reached out and ran his fingers through Wally's red hair. It was soft and he was suddenly hyper-aware of the years between Roy and Wally.

“How could anyone do that to their child,” Roy muttered with a hushed tone. “Especially to a kid so kind hearted as Wally.” Oliver bit his lip as Roy spoke words that mirrored his own thoughts. He noticed a sharp glint in the younger archer's eyes. “You can't kill them,” he felt obligated to tell him. “Question took care of it and I'm sure Bats, Barry, and Hal will find some way to torture them,” he said, mentally adding himself to the mix of upset heroes. Oliver added Roy too because there was no way Roy was going to hold back from doing someone to ruin Wally's former parents' lives. It didn't matter if their memories were erased to him, to any of them really.

Movement from Wally had both of them freezing, afraid they'd woken him. It didn't escape either of them how Wally frowned, body trembling a little and eyes twitching. He was having a nightmare. Roy tugged Wally closer, letting the younger's head rest on his shoulder as Oliver carded his fingers through ginger locks again. It seemed to settle him down and the frown faded from his face.

Things would be difficult, there was no doubt about that. But if it meant seeing Wally smile, seeing him happy, they would do anything, fight anyone. It didn't matter what came at them, they would protect him. It wasn't official until the papers went through, but papers were simply that. Wally was theirs. He could be a 'Queen' if he wanted, or even a 'Harper'. If he wanted to keep his last name that was fine. Secretly he hoped Wally wouldn't want the name Allen, but it would be up to him.

They watched the way Wally's body rose and fell as he breathed in his sleep. It was quiet, abnormally so in the manor, especially with a Speedster in the house. That would change. Things would change. They were fine with that.

Roy and Oliver exchanged a glance over Wally. They didn't have the best relationship, but they knew that they would do anything for Wally, even mending their broken ties. Perhaps they couldn't fix things now, but nothing was immediate (except a Speedster and their appetite). No fight would get in the way of their affection for the newest member of their family and they both silently vowed to protect him from whatever came at him.

Wally was family. They were the family he'd chosen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So.. End chapter. It took a lot more than I thought to finish this.  
> Originally I wanted to see Wally go to the archers for help and one thing led to the next and this is how it turned out.  
> (Sorry Barry, Hal) Wally gets a new family that loves him.
> 
> I may or may not add a few after thoughts/scenes of Wally with his new family.  
> Anyways, hoped you liked it (I'm skeptical on it myself).


End file.
